Real Madrid claim astonishing win over AS Roma, for whom De Roon and Malen score
Real Madrid struck three times from three corners in the final quarter of an hour against AS Roma on Wednesday. Goals from Marten de Roon and Donyell Malen (2) had made Kylian Mbappé's equaliser look inconsequential. José Mourinho's side, facing his former club, won 4-3.
In Italy, Roma had been performing well, and they carried that form into the match. Real Madrid survived a few early chances, but Matías Soulé then found De Roon in space. The Dutchman fired home from just outside the box via a Madrid player's leg: 1-0.
Minutes later, Malen nearly got his first goal of the evening. His effort looked set to slip under Courtois and in, but the shot's topspin allowed the Belgian goalkeeper to gather it just in time. Mbappé then produced an equaliser out of nowhere, leaving Pierluigi Gollini with no chance as his deflected shot flew in: 1-1.
Marc Cucurella should have put Real Madrid ahead after half an hour. The left-back dribbled into a one-on-one with Gollini, only for the world champion to send his effort wide.
Early in the second half, Roma lost Paulo Dybala to a muscle injury, just as they had lost Manu Koné after only a quarter of an hour. Rodrigo Mora replaced the Argentinian and needed less than five minutes to make his mark. The Portuguese player slipped a clever pass to Malen, who beat Courtois via Federico Valverde: 2-1.
Soulé split the defence with a through ball about five minutes after the 2-1, and Malen sent Courtois the wrong way before finishing. The flag went up for offside, but Valverde had stepped up just too late: 3-1.
Chasing a way back, Real Madrid created several dangerous moments. Endrick, who had come very close to a move to Roma last summer, dribbled into the box before Gollini stopped him at the last moment. Gollini, who had replaced the injured Mile Svilar, then saved a shot from Mbappé with his legs.
At Stadio Olimpico, the fans were ready to celebrate. Instead, Espí came off the bench to prove his value again, tapping in from a corner after unconvincing goalkeeping by Gollini to make it 3-2.
From the next corner, Arda Güler delivered the ball onto the head of Endrick, who had made an excellent impact from the bench. His header proved too powerful for Gollini. Another corner brought Real's fourth, with former Roma player Antonio Rüdiger firing home to make it 4-3.
